


How to become a Demon Ruler

by chibinekochan



Category: Shall We Date?: Obey Me!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-14 09:14:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 14,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28918164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chibinekochan/pseuds/chibinekochan
Summary: After getting adopted by the Demon King * better known as Diavolos dad *, you get sent to the demon prince castle.There you are supposed to get your proper education from your new adoptive brother and his butler.
Relationships: Barbatos (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!) & Reader, Diavolo (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!) & Reader
Comments: 37
Kudos: 82





	1. 101

Being summoned to the Devildom out of nowhere is a massive shock to say it lightly.

Yet here I am standing in front of a huge throne in a massive room. An equally impressive man sitting on the throne.  
His sheer presence demands my full attention.

I can only swallow my saliva. I'm sure that my life is over.

The demon stares at me, my body naturally trembles.

When he opens his mouth, I hold my breath in anticipation. "Mortal child, I have summoned you here in order to adopt you. Henceforth you shall be recognized as my heir and potential future ruler of this realm." His voice almost shakes the foundation of the room.

My mouth starts moving almost on its own. Before I realized it, words spilled from my mouth. "Wait a moment; I'm an adult. I already have a life in the human world and ruler of the underworld? Do I get no say in this?"

I instantly regret my big mouth. Feeling like his gaze burns a hole through me.

"I have already decided. I'm not concerned about your options. You will stay with my son and will be properly instructed by him. I wish to see results or else I will replace you with someone more capable." His words echo in the huge room.

I know what this implies, I have to play along or I will be dead.

And so in a single moment my whole world is turned upside down.

Without any further explanation I once more find myself in a completely new environment.

This also appears to be a castle or at least an enormous mansion, at least by judging the interior.

I stare in awe at the place, feeling overwhelmed by this whole ordeal.

At this moment I notice a slightly concerned looking man staring at me. Normally I would find this rude, but he is very handsome, so I let it slide.

He gives me the lightest of smiles. Is it possible this day isn't all terrible?  
"Welcome to my castle. My name is Diavolo and according to my father we are now siblings. I know this must be a lot to take in, but I'm sure we will get along just fine." Diavolo seems to take this new development pretty easy.

I wonder if he is used to antics like these. Maybe his father pulls stunts like this all the time?  
"Hello… To be completely honest I would rather just go back home but I assume that is not an option." I feel a bit wary of him, despite his seemingly welcoming attitude.  
Diavolo has an otherworldly feel to him that I can't quite pinpoint, but I'm certain that he is a demon.

"My father can be quite hard headed at times. I know he means well, though. It's been my dream to make our realms come closer, for an extremely long time. I guess this is just how my father decided to help with that." Diavolo sounds nonchalant about this whole situation.

I'm unsure what I can even say to that logic. "Was it necessary to kidnap me?"  
"I'm certain there must be better methods but it's too late for that now. Regardless, I'm pretty thrilled to have a little sibling now. So let's do our best to get along." Diavolo smiles at me, bright as the sun.

Somehow I get swept away by his beaming smile and friendly behavior. "Sure, let's do that."

Diavolo seems extremely pleased by my answer, and his smile somehow gets even more beaming.  
At this point I start wondering if he might be secretly an angel but I keep that to myself.

"Barbatos will you show my sibling their room?" Diavolo speaks to someone behind me.  
I turn my head and am surprised by a man right behind me. I had not noticed him at all. I'm unsure if I should be terrified or impressed.

"Of course, my lord. Please follow me, young liege." Barbatos turns to me with a courteous smile. It's easy to see that he is the butler of my new brother.  
It's very hard to say no to this so I simply give Diavolo a slight bow and follow after Barbatos.

He escorts me deeper into the castle, it looks like a confusing maze to me.

I look in awe at the new scenery. I still can't comprehend that I will stay here.

Then Barbatos stops in front of a door.  
I practically run into him.

He opens the door and motions to me to follow him.  
Carefully I step inside of the room, unsure what I should expect. The room is extremely luxurious. Even the curtains look more expensive than my entire previous house.

The bed is big enough for at least five people and there are two other doors in the room.

"This is your room. You should be able to find whatever you require. You have your own private bathroom and dressing room. In addition you have a private study, small library and a room to meet with your guests." Barbatos explains everything very calmly.

I hope that I don't have a foolish expression on my face right now. My mind is completely vacant. "Is all of this really for me?" I look at Barbatos, still waiting for someone to wake me up from this dream.  
"Yes indeed. You should rest a little until dinner time. I'm sure all of this is quite a lot for you to handle." Barbatos is smiling as usual but I feel like I can see a twinkle of kindness. Maybe I'm just imagining it.  
"Alright, umm what kind of clothes should I wear for dinner?" I honestly feel lost and hope they don't expect me to wear some uncomfortable fancy clothes.

"You can keep wearing your current attire but I also supplied your dressing room with some essentials. I know the collection is still relatively lacking, but I was in a bit of a bind since we only heard about your arrival today. I'm sure you will find something that is to your liking." Barbatos seems slightly upset, as if he failed by only getting essentials. Honestly, I can't even start imagining what he finds essential.  
“I'm sure that I will find something to wear.” I try to reassure him.

Barbatos looks relieved. "I will let you rest now but please don't hesitate to call me if you find anything missing or have any questions."  
I'm about to ask if he will hear me but then I remember that he is a demon and decide to just accept it.

Barbatos silently leaves the room.  
Unsure what to do, I stood in the room for a few moments.

Next I decide to look at my new clothes. I hope that Barbatos' work attire is a good sign for his general taste in clothes.

With trembling hands I open the door to the dressing room. It's massive and filled with clothes.

My eyes are wide open. I'm convinced that I forgot to breathe for about a minute.

The sheer amount of clothing is absolutely overwhelming.

Everything looks perfect, so perfect it's kinda scary.

I just step backward and close the door. I'm definitely not prepared for any of these.

In the end I stay in the clothes that are on my body. Barbatos said this would be fine after all.

I look around a bit, but I'm kinda frightened to touch anything and just awkwardly sit down on the bed.

It's extremely soft and comfortable. I wasn't expecting it to be this nice.  
I lay down and just enjoy the soft comfort of my new bed for a bit, well at least that's the plan.


	2. 102

At that moment I open my eyes and almost have a heart attack when I find Barbatos looking at me. "Wah, what are you doing here?" I yelp in surprise.

"I'm ashamed if I startled you. It's time for dinner." Barbatos is calm as usual and smiles at me. It's a bit unnerving if I'm being honest.

"Next time you should knock." I say with a frown.

"Very well, I will remember that." Barbatos face doesn't even twitch.

He is a real pro. I have to admire that dedication.

I get up from the bed.

Barbatos stands there, seemingly waiting for a chance to assist me.

"Do you wish to change?" Barbatos tone doesn't seem to imply that I should change my clothes.

"No, I'm good..." I'm hesitant if my answer is right and carefully peek at him.

Barbatos serenely smiles at me. "Then we should head to the dining room."

I'm starting to wonder if anything would ever wipe that smile off his face. I don't think I want to find out.

Barbatos escorts me to the dining room. It's more of a banquet hall. It's so vast, I can barely see the other side of the room.

Diavolo is already sitting on the table and smiles happily at me.

Barbatos shows me to my seat.

I sit down, anxious of what to do or say. Everything is still sinking in.

"How do you like your room?" Diavolo breaks the silence.

"It's very charming." I can't tell him that it's too big or that I'm nervous about breaking anything if I look at it too intensely. So I'm just being gracious.

"That's great to hear. I was worried if you could feel at home here but I'm delighted you like it." Diavolo seems so genuinely pleased that it makes my heart ache.

"My lord please don't pressure the young liege." Barbatos softly reprimands Diavolo.

I hold my breath for Diavolos reaction to that.

"Oh, did I do that? I apologize, I might be a bit too excited about having such a cute sibling. Don't mind me." Much to my surprise Diavolo waves it literally off.

I feel a bit embarrassed about being called cute but I can't say anything to stop him. "It's alright." I offer him a faint smile.

"Don't encourage him too much." Barbatos almost whispers this to me, but it's obvious that Diavolo can still hear him.

"Shall we eat then?" Diavolo's expression has not changed at all.

I nod and our meal begins.

The meal includes several courses. I do my best to remember what cutlery to use for certain dishes but frankly I have never seen any of the food being served.

A few times I direct a desperate glance at Barbatos and he kindly points to the correct silverware. Then I look at Diavolo on how to eat the meal. He doesn't seem to mind his own manners that much.

Our meal is a bit strange, but I am more than full by the end of it.

"That was extremely pleasant. How did you like our food?" Diavolo seems a bit worried, like I didn't eat enough. I mean he did eat a lot more than I did.

"I have never eaten anything like this before but it was absolutely delicious. I want to compliment the cook." I state the genuine truth. Some of the dishes looked a bit dubious but everything tasted very good and some dishes were similar to human food.

"I'm extremely delighted to hear that." Barbatos tone is gentler than before and his smile reaches his eyes. So he must be very happy.

"Wait, don't tell me that you prepared all of this?" It surprises me to say the least. Typically, something like this would be done by a kitchen chef.

"Indeed, I take pride in my cooking." Barbatos nods.

"That is extremely impressive." It's hard to believe, but I guess I shouldn't be surprised that the butler of the demon prince is top class.

Barbatos seems to let his mask slip for about a nano second and bestows me a genuine smile when our eyes meet.

It gives me pleasant shivers.

"As much as I'd love to idle chat with you but I fear we have a lot of significant things to talk about. So we should move to the living room." Diavolo seems regretful when he says this.

"We can talk casually once we are done." Whenever I see him, looking even slightly sad, he reminds me of a big puppy and can't help cheering him up. 

"Ohh! That is an excellent idea." Diavolo nods. 

I swear that I hear a slight snicker from Barbatos, who stands behind me. I'm uncertain if I should acknowledge that. 

I stand up and Diavolo walks beside me, he is cautious to follow my pace. I appreciate that greatly. 

The living room is just as big and gaudy as I expected. Somehow I'm slowly getting used to it. 

Diavolo sits down and motions me to sit across from him.

Barbatos moves quickly to serve us both tea. 

Diavolo looks slightly troubled when he starts talking. "Father has informed me of what he expects from you. I protested against placing this much pressure on you. Sadly he can be quite hard headed. So I have decided to give you Barbatos as your personal attendant. He is very well versed in all the things you will require in order to succeed. I also rely on him greatly. I'm very confident that he will teach you everything that you need to know." Diavolo smiles kindly at me. 

Diavolo emphasizes the word trust. I'm certain it can't be easy for a prince to trust anyone.

"This is a great honor but isn't he your personal butler?" I wonder if he will be okay without Barbatos. 

"He is, but I'm convinced that I will be able to survive without him." Diavolo doesn't seem to think it's an issue, at least. 

"We will see about that. I can merely hope you don't think that I will neglect my duties towards you just because I'm the young lieges Butler at the moment.” Barbatos didn't miss a beat. 

He can be pretty brutal, but that doesn't faze Diavolo at all. I start to wonder if anything troubles him.

Diavolo shrugs. "You should give me some more credit. At any rate, I know training will be difficult but I will make sure that you also get to rest. In about a week there is a formal party at the house of lamentation. I think this will mark the ideal opportunity for you to gain some experience from a formal event in the devildom. Do you think you will be capable of handling it?" Diavolo looks at me with a hopeful gleam. 

"A week? Isn't that a bit too soon? I don't know anything about demon manners." I'm quite baffled. 

"I have observed your manners and there aren't any glaring issues. Actually you possess more manners than some other demons that I know. From what I have noted, I would say that you are simply unfamiliar with the kind of food we serve. Other than that we probably should add some dance lessons and teach you some information that will be helpful for you." Barbatos seems to have everything fully planned out. 

"We should go shopping to get some elegant clothes too." Diavolo seems to agree with this plan. 

I'm just glad that they don't perceive me as some sort of social pariah. "If you think that I won't embarrass you, I will do my best." I give him a faint smile. I have an uneasy feeling about it to be honest, but it's hard to resist his smile. 

"You would never embarrass me, you are my dearest little sibling after all. If anyone dares to cross you they will dearly pay for it." Diavolo says this without a hint of sarcasm. 

I'm not sure what to say to such a bold statement, it's pretty sweet that he admires me this much already. Even when I'm slightly concerned since it hasn't even been a day yet. Maybe this is completely normal for Diavolo? 

"Please don't do anything rash my lord." Barbatos refills his cup, and I feel a sense of relief. At least Barbatos is calm. "Defending the young master is my job after all. I will let them pay dearly." My eyes widen from these words. For many reasons. First of all he has a slightly scary aura for a brief moment, and on top of that, him calling me master does certain things to me. 

"I'm sure that won't be necessary." I'm not quite sure who I'm defending here. 

"You are certainly a kind person." Diavolo emphasizes this by nodding. 

"I think you should head to bed now. Tomorrow will be a long day for you." Barbatos speaks politely, but he leaves no room to disagree. 

"I think you are right." I'm too tired to fight right now and just agree.

“Sleep tight. I hope I can be there for tomorrow's breakfast but for dinner I will definitely join you.” Diavolo sounds like a doting big brother. 

It makes me giggle a bit. He seems to register this as happiness and smiles at me. 

“Thank you, have a pleasant night.” I respond in a kind manner with a smile. 

“Thank you and don't hesitate to ask me if you need anything. I should give you a phone.” Diavolo has apparently just thought of this.

“I will make sure that you get one by tomorrow morning.” Barbatos leaves absolutely no doubt about that.

“That is very kind of you.” I wasn't expecting this.

"Don't worry about it. I'm determined to make you feel at home here." Diavolo speaks with great determination. I can't help but believe him. 

Somehow I start to hope that his words will come true. "I hope so too." I say softly, unsure if I'm telling the truth. 

Barbatos nods, as if to assure me. 

Then I stand up and once again follow Barbatos to my room. "Thank you for escorting me Barbatos. Have a pleasant night." I feel grateful towards him. 

Barbatos seems slightly surprised but then smiles at me. "Sleep well master, and if you require anything please call me." It seems like he wants to add something but doesn't. Maybe he just wants to give me some space. I appreciate that. 

"I will do that." I assure him. 

Barbatos waits for me to close the door, and I can hear him walking away. 

I let out an audible sigh. This definitely won't be pleasant. 

My body is tired but my mind is racing, so I decide to take a look into my bathroom. 

Much to my surprise I find the bathtub filled with steaming water and a flowery smell fills the air. 

I wonder when Barbatos did this. Well, it is possible that there are other servants. Still pretty impressive. 

I smile and undress quickly. 

The bath melts much of my tension. Somehow my thoughts calm down. 

I mean I got a personal butler, and my new older brother seems to be a great guy. Suddenly I feel like I might actually be able to do this. 

This thought leads me to a deep sleep as soon as I hit my bed.


	3. 103

The next morning comes, and I faintly hear something knocking but I just ignore it. 

Then about five minutes later I get woken up. 

I groan. “It’s too early, go away,” I mumble. 

“As much as I’d love to do that, I’m afraid your schedule is not allowing that.” Barbatos` voice makes me realize where I am. 

This almost causes me to jump right out of the bed. “You startled me. Didn’t I tell you to knock?” I say, still half asleep and a bit moody.

“You did and I knocked but it seems that you have an unusually deep sleep. So I had no choice but to open the door.” Barbatos stays calm, this somehow calms me down too. 

“Oh, so that wasn’t a dream…” I admit, almost feeling guilty. 

Barbatos doesn’t move a single muscle. “I’m not certain what you are referring to but you have to get ready now. The shower is ready for you." 

Still feeling rather sluggish as I head to the shower. Everything is indeed prepared. 

I take a quick shower and dress what Barbatos has prepared. It’s remarkably similar to what I wore yesterday. I don’t complain since it gives me something familiar in this surreal situation. 

I head back to the room. Barbatos is waiting for me. 

At this point, I’m already used to following him. 

Finally, we reach yet another room. It seems more casual than the dining room. Looking closer at everything it’s a Wintergarden. It’s very lovely. 

"Good morning. Have you slept well?” I overhear Diavolos voice from behind me. 

I turn to him. “Yes, I slept very well.” I smile at him and he smiles back at me. 

“So well that they almost overslept. It seems that it runs in the family.” Barbatos has no qualms about taking a dig at his master. 

“I’m glad to hear that we have that in common. I think Barbatos could give us some more leeway, don’t you agree?” Diavolo looks at me expecting help.

“I would gladly allow you leeway if you would fulfill your duties. I don’t take pleasure in nudging you.” I feel a slightly icy aura from Barbatos. 

It robs me of the strength to agree with Diavolo. So I just sit down and change the topic. “What do we have for breakfast?" 

"I’m delighted you asked. I have prepared devil horn croissants and several jams to go along with it. Do you prefer coffee or tea in the morning?” Barbatos then explains the tea options that go along with each jam, it makes my head hurt so I just enjoy coffee. 

Diavolo seems to do just the same. I try to retain my best manners while eating. 

“You can feel fully relaxed when we are just in private. No need to mind your manners.” Diavolo seems to notice my tension. His words honestly touch me. 

“I fully agree with the sentiment my lord, but the young liege has just started training so you should be more mindful about that. It wouldn’t hurt you to support the young liege by being on your best behavior either.” Barbatos stops Divalo dead in his tracks. 

I know what’s at stake here, even if I want to forget it. “Thank you, Diavolo, but I have to agree with Barbatos. If I want to succeed then, I have to do my best.” I state this in a kind but firm matter. 

“Very well, I won’t stop you from doing your best. Just don’t forget that this is your home now too.” Diavolo seems genuinely worried, and his words mean a lot to me. 

“I will remember that.” I smile and we complete our meal. 

Then my training begins. 

Honestly, nothing could have prepared me for it. No amount of study or training could have prepared me for this. 

Barbatos calmly stacks a tower of books on my desk. “These books outline the basics of Devildom history, then we have to study the language, after that, we refine your manors. Next, you will have a short break, some short exercise, and dance lessons. After that, we had a lunch break. Then we start to cover the basics of magic. After that, you have the rest of the day off.” Barbatos might as well have slapped my cheeks. 

I feel overwhelmed. The sheer number of tasks seems overwhelming to me. Merely looking at the stacks of books makes me want to cry. How am I ever supposed to remember any of this? 

Barbatos seems to sense my distraughtness. “I will make you double the amount of your favorite dessert for tonight and if you are thorough I will bake your favorite cake for coffee time.”

Barbatos certainly knows what to say to bribe me into playing along. 

“Sounds good but you will have to give me three times that dessert and I will need some more breaks in between or my brain will fry.” I list some demands for him. 

Barbatos thinks for a moment. “Sounds fair to me. Your tasks require a lot of energy.”

So my first day in hell truly starts. 

Barbatos is patient but strict, he is good at knowing when to praise me and when to reprimand me. 

He is very effective at what he does. My head is filled with all kinds of information, and I’m pretty certain that I won’t be able to remember anything at all. 

I’m trying my best; my impending death is a great motivation. Barbatos compliments me regularly, and that always seems to spur me on. 

So my history and language lessons are finally over. 

I’m tired but the short breaks in between help. 

Then we change rooms again for my light exercises. I know Barbatos only wants me to warm up for our dance lessons but honestly, his definition of ‘warm-up’ can only be described as demonic. 

I’m pretty sure that my soul left my body at least once. 

“It seems like we have to stop here for today.” Barbatos hums lightly, once the lesson is over and I lay dying on the floor. 

I can only nod. “I think I saw the gates of heaven.” My breath is rigid. 

“That surely was fascinating. I suppose I have to tone down the warm-up next time.” Barbatos muses about this. 

“Please just imagine me as a small demon child when thinking about future exercise.” I’m honestly fed up at this point. 

“You can take a break until lunchtime and I humbly apologize for my lapse of judgment. I will increase the amount of cake for later.” Barbatos seems regretful. 

Somehow that perks me right up. I’m really easy to win over. “Sounds great.”

Barbatos smiles and extends his hand out to me. I grip it and with careful ease, he helps me up. 

I groan a bit and Barbatos looks at me with a slightly tender expression. 

“I will prepare you some relaxing tea but first I will bring you to your room.” Barbatos sounds genuinely bad about my pain. 

I nod and once I’m back in my room I straight up fall to my bed. 

I’m incapable of moving anymore. 

At this moment I have genuine doubts about my future in the devildom.


	4. 104

Once again I hear a knocking sound.

This time I manage to open my eyes. "Come in." 

I fully expect it to be Barbatos. 

I slowly get up in my bed. 

Just to find the ever-smiling Diavolo in front of my bed. 

My eyes widen from the surprise. "D-Diavolo." I'm tempted to cover myself, but I'm fully dressed. 

"Hello, I apologize for interrupting your nap. Barbartos told me that you had a rough time and might not wish to see him, and I kind of forgot to give you your new phone this morning. So I volunteered to pick you up." Diavolo swiftly explains the situation. 

I feel slightly steamrolled. "I forgot about that too and I'm not mad at Barbatos. He couldn't know how weak humans are." I can only imagine how much more powerful demons are. 

Diavolo chuckles. "When I was trained I had a very difficult time. I'm sure I broke down crying the first few weeks." 

"That's pretty surprising. I can't even imagine you being sad." I wonder what that would look like. 

"I get sad too sometimes. I was hoping that you wouldn't ever get sad for as long as you are here." Diavolo has a complicated expression. 

"Why do you care about me so much?" I'm very curious about this. 

Diavolo is surprised by my question. He takes a hand to his face and thinks for a moment. Then his face lights up. "I always wanted a sibling, so I'm just really glad that finally, I got one." 

His straight answer surprises me. "You are a pretty strange one."I blurt out without much thought. 

Diavolo shrugs. "I'm just glad that you are being so open towards me."

"I should say that to you." I giggle. Diavolo makes it very easy to feel at home in such a strange place. 

Then suddenly my stomach starts to rumble, my cheeks flush with embarrassment. 

Diavolo lets out a heartfelt laugh. "Seems like it's time for lunch."

"Sure, seems like it. I should change my clothes first." Suddenly I realize that I probably stink. 

Diavolo doesn't seem to mind or care at all and just keeps casually standing in the middle of the room. "Alright, I will just wait here."

"Wait outside! " I state firmly with some force in my voice. 

Diavolo looks very troubled for a brief moment. "This must be the feeling of exclusion I have heard so much about."

I'm unsure what to even say to this statement so I slightly glare at him. 

Diavolo sighs and leaves. He is a big puppy. At least he listened to me. 

I decide to wear something comfortable and leave my room. 

I find Diavolo texting someone. 

As soon as I open the door he smiles at me as nothing happened. 

"I hope you didn't wait for too long."

"No problem, and here is the phone. Before I forget again. I assume you know how to use one?" Diavolo seems to be his usual self. What relieves me of my slight guilt. 

"Of course. Who doesn't?" I genuinely wonder and put the phone in my pocket. 

"You would be surprised." Diavolo shrugs and we head to the dining room. 

Somehow I thought they had a separate lunchroom. 

Barbatos is waiting for us. His smile is polite as always. Somehow he seems slightly off. 

Does he really think that I'm upset at him? I can't imagine that at all. 

I smile at him and sit down. Honestly, I'm starving. 

"I'm very sorry for all the pain I have caused you earlier. I intend to train you and not to break you." This must deeply concern him. 

"The training is very hard and honestly the physical training has almost killed me. I think I now have a good picture of what is considered normal around here. So I will just move on and hope that I will get strong enough to pass the king's trials. I sure hope he won't give me a physical exam at least." I made up my mind not to mull over this and just move on. My fight has only just begun. 

"I love your attitude. This is exactly why I'm glad to have you as my sibling." Diavolo nods proudly. 

"I can only agree on that and I swear with my help you will overcome every obstacle that is in your way." Barbatos seems back to normal and bows towards me. 

I feel motivated by both of them. 

Then my stomach rumbles again, causing me to blush once again. 

Especially since both men let out loud laughter. 

Barbatos seems to give me an extra big portion of everything today. 

Miraculously I finish everything, including the two extra servings of dessert. 

If the demon king won't kill me then my cholesterol will. 

I feel very satisfied when my meal is over. 

"I'm glad to see that you have such a healthy appetite. I was a bit worried about you yesterday." Diavolo has a kind look on his face. 

I feel slightly embarrassed. "Actually the amount I ate yesterday would be considered normal for human standards."

"I think your remark was pretty rude my lord," Barbatos whispers loud enough for me to over hear him. 

Diavolo seems confused and I can't even look at him right now.

"I'm just glad that you enjoy the food." Diavolo is clueless sometimes. 

"We should continue our training. We have much to do since we moved our dance lesson to later." Barbatos reminds me in a seemingly cruel way. 

"You're right. I hope to see you again later Diavolo." With a slight sigh, I get up. 

"Yes, same here. Hang in there. I have faith in you." Diavolo puts a hand on my shoulder. It almost seems like energy is flowing from his big hand into me. My cheeks flush again. 

"T-thank you." I hold the urge back to call him big brother since that feels wrong to me. I don't have a shred of familiar feelings for him. 

"I also have faith in you to finish your tasks without my help, my lord." Barbatos looks sharply at Diavolo. 

It seems to be a critical hit since Diavolo looks very desolate. I feel bad for him. 

"I will." Diavolo sounds very weak. 

Barbatos sighs just a little and then turns to me smiling, as usual. "Let's start our next lesson."

I feel a sense of dread but follow Barbatos regardless. 

Soon I find myself in a huge library. I also spot some strange looking trinkets. 

"This is our library. We also have some items here that are helpful with magic. First, we have to see if you have any latent magic in you." Barbatos goes to one of the trinkets. It looks a bit like a big pot with some wires sticking out from it, there are also some big gemstones on it.

It's pretty gaudy and I look doubtful at it. "What does this thing do?" 

I narrow my eyes at it. 

"You simply put your hand here and then it will tell us how much magic energy you process and what element is the most prevalent in you." Barbato points to a huge gem in the center of the potlike thing. 

I somehow wonder if it will do anything but I put my hand on it anyway. 

Then I wait and Barbatos looks at it. 

I'm about to remove my hand, due to the lack of response. 

Then suddenly the pot starts to shake and hiss. Out of reflex, my hand moves away. 

Then suddenly smoke comes from it. With terror, I look at Barbatos. "Did I break it?" 

Barbatos has a hand on his chin. "It looks like it."

I feel panic rising. How can he be this calm? This ugly thing was probably expensive. Will he expect me to replace it? 

I stare at Barbatos, waiting for a reaction. 

"This certainly was unexpected but I guess it's to be expected that my master is extraordinary." Barbatos smiles at me. 

"So umm what does that mean?" I meekly ask. 

"Well, it means that your magic is unmeasurable. I have never experienced it myself so that can only mean that you are very special." Barbatos seems almost proud. 

"So it's a good thing that I broke it?" When I look at the still-smoking pot, I wonder if it wasn't just a fluke. 

"Well, it is certainly interesting, quite unexpected even. I'm sure lord Diavolo will be equally delighted to hear about this." He isn't ironic at all, what baffles me the most. 

This is the first time that I got praised for breaking something. 

"What does this mean for my magic training?" I silently hope that today's training will be postponed. 

"It means that we start at the basics and go from there." Barbatos doesn't bat an eye. 

I wonder if there was truly any point to this magic device. 

The magic lesson itself is pretty boring. 

Barbatos explains the concept of magic to me and then I do some breathing exercises to help me feel my magic force. I can't feel a thing but at least it's relaxing.


	5. 105

I feel ready for my dance lessons and to just end this day. 

“I’m glad to see that you are still so motivated.” Barbatos seems to misjudge the source of my motivation but I take the compliment with a smile regardless. 

“I’m trying my best but I have to warn you. I have two left feet.” I feel slightly ashamed of that. 

“I’m certain that we can fix that with enough practice. Let’s move to the practice room.” Barbatos seems to have zero doubts. I follow him but I still have concerns. 

The ballroom is exactly what I have expected. It’s a seemingly endless room, with a lot of glass on one side. 

Barbatos turns the music on. It’s waltz music. 

Barbatos comes back to me, he stands right in front of me. “First, the hold. Place your left hand on my back.“

I step closer to him and a bit awkwardly place my hand on his sturdy back.

He seems pleased enough. „Now extend your right arm.” 

I extend it and he takes my hand in his. I’m painfully aware of how close our bodies are right now.

I feel him squeeze his arm around my waist.

This is very embarrassing but also somewhat nice.

"Please relax.” Barbatos has a very soft tone. 

I had not realized how stiff I am. “I’m just a bit worried that I will hurt you.” Just the thought of stepping on his foot mortifies me.

Barbatos gives me a soft laugh. “There is no need for you to concern yourself with me." 

This makes my heart ache for some reason. "Too bad, since I won’t stop being concerned for you.” I point a little to underline my sentiment. 

“How very kind of you.” He shows me a genuine smile. 

Once again I find myself blushing. This is getting very troublesome. 

“Shall we start then?” Barbatos reminds me why we are here. 

I honestly had forgotten for a moment.“ Y-yeah.”

“Very well, take a step back,” Barbatos tells me what to do and I follow his lead. He softly pushes me. I take a step back and Barbatos follows me. “Now a step to the side, feel how I lead you.” His hand softly pushes me to the side. 

“Now a step forward.” His hand on my back gently pushes me the right way. 

Barbatos nods with approval. “Very good. Now I will count until we are in sync. One…two…three…” We both go through the motions, very slowly. I’m just focusing on the steps. I glance down to see where my feet are.

“Please look at me master.” Barbatos notices right away. His words are very effective. “Sorry…” I look right into his eyes. I almost stumble but his hand keeps me sturdy. 

After this, our lesson runs pretty smoothly. 

I’m pretty exhausted but it wasn’t as bad as expected. It must be that Barbatos is an excellent teacher and that he didn’t even flinch when I accidentally stepped on his foot. 

“You did very well. After all this hard work you have certainly earned your dinner.” Barbatos praises me once again. 

“It’s all thanks to you.” I know very well how lost I would be without him. Quite literally. 

“You flatter me too much master.” Barbatos smiles. 

After a break in the library, I decide to go alone to the dining room. I can’t forever rely on Barbatos to bring me everywhere.

He looked like a sad puppy. I kept being strong. 

So now I have a map of the castle and enough time to find my way in this maze. 

With huge relief, I find my way. 

Barbatos seems equally relieved to see me.

“Welcome. I heard you decided to come all alone. I’m glad you found your way.” Diavolo seems cheerful as usual. 

“I’m glad too. It was the right decision to not send a search party just yet.” Barbatos remark leaves me unsure whenever this is supposed to be a joke or not. 

“I’m an adult and I can handle myself.” I’m not quite sure that they know that. 

“They grow up so fast.” Diavolo seems a bit sad. 

“Yes, they certainly do.” Barbatos nods with a sad expression. 

“I was already all grown up when I came here.” I can only shake my head and start to eat. Both men laugh. 

Once again Diavolo seems pleased that I eat so healthy. I don’t give it much thought, since somehow this is very nice. I might start to like this place after all. 

I feel pretty satisfied and plenty filled with my favorite dessert.

“What are you planning to do this evening?” Barbatos knows already that my tasks are all done. 

“I will take a bath, relax and sleep.” Honestly, I’m too tired to even think of anything to do. 

“That sounds great. You deserve the rest after all the training you did today. Barbatos told me about your magic reading. It’s marvelous, to say the least.” Diavolo approves and then he mentions the earlier incident. 

“I’m not sure about that. To me, it looked like it just broke.” I feel like the picture of that golden pot smoke will haunt me tonight. 

“It was a magical item it’s incapable of simply breaking.” Barbatos seems sure of it but to me, the item looked utterly unimpressive. 

“It’s certainly impressive. Nobody ever broke it, not even Lucifer.” Diavolo seems to remicense over something. 

“Lucifer, like the devil?” I’m very confused. 

“The devil? No, he is a fallen angel that is now a very high ranking demon.” Diavolo seems confused. 

“I guess humans got some stuff wrong.” I can only shrug. I have much left to learn. 

“We will cover that topic in tomorrow’s history lesson. Actually, he will attend the party in six days.” Barbatos uses my interest to plug more lessons. 

“Wow, that is kinda scary…” I flinch a little. 

“Don’t worry Lucifer is a great guy. We are great friends. He will love you.” Diavolo seems to have nothing but good things to say about Lucifer. 

I’m not sure how to feel about this. 

“There is no need to trouble yourself with this. I know you will do great at the party.” Barbatos gives me some encouragement. It’s sweet of him, even when I’m not particularly worried about making a great expression. 

“Thank you. I should go to my room now.” I feel suddenly very sleepy. This whole day was just a lot honestly. 

“Yes, that seems a wise decision. I would be mortified if you would find yourself sick.” Barbatos nods and seems sad at the image of me getting sick. 

“Don’t worry I’m a weed.” I laugh. 

“Nonsense if you are a weed then I’m a pickle.” Diavolo shudders at the thought. 

“You don’t like pickles?” I find that very surprising. 

“It is a huge issue.” Barbatos shakes his head.“Regardless let me accompany you to your room.” Before I can object to that Barbatos` motions with his hand. “I don’t accept any objections." 

With that, I get silenced. 

So once again Barbatos escorts me to my room, but this time I walk beside him. 

Somehow this makes this feel much better to me.

"I’m sorry that I went over your head but you are tired and I don’t want to strain you by having to walk around for hours before you reach your room.” Barbatos has a sad expression. Almost like that happened. 

“I understand, you are just worried for your master. I’m very grateful for that.” I smile at him to assure him. 

“I’m glad that you see it that way. I know that I must seem harsh to you, but let me assure you that I care greatly about you.” Barbatos offers me the softest of smiles. 

I can’t help but smile at this. “I know thank you for your support Barbatos.”

“I will continue to support you, even if it should take my life,” Barbatos states this so casually and yet full of sincerity. 

“I don’t want you to die for me.” I’m confused and this is all I can muster to say. 

“I’m just saying that if you would require my life then I would gladly offer it to you.” Barbatos doesn’t miss a beat. 

I can only hope that such a day will never come. It would break my heart. 

“There is no need to be sad, master,” Barbatos speaks softly, he must see my distress. 

I can’t add anything to his words. “I should go and take my bath now. Sleep tight Barbatos." 

"Rest well, master.” Barbatos waits again until I close my door. 

When I’m in the bathtub I decide to order Barbatos to never die for me. I’m sure he will do it if it’s an order. 

With that thought, I go to bed. More or less ready for whatever the next day will toss at me.


	6. 106

I somehow wake up just before Barbartos knocks on my door.

He is pleasantly surprised when I open the door. “Good morning, master. I hope you had a pleasant night.”

“I slept like a stone.” I'm already quite used to this place. It's surprising how naturally I seem to fit in here.

“I'm glad to see you so energetic.” Barbatos sounds relieved for some reason. 

"That will probably only last until our first lesson." I chuckle nervously. 

"I think you will enjoy today's lesson and first you should get ready." Barbatos reminds me that I'm still in my Pyjamas and I blush. 

"Oh yeah, right. Then excuse me. You can go ahead and wait in the breakfast room. If I'm not there in an hour you can start a search party." I make a silly joke but Barbatos doesn't look amused at all. 

"I'd rather not but I will follow your wishes." He looks slightly troubled. 

"I'm all grown up don't worry. I actually know some self-defense too." I make a silly self-defense-like pose. 

Barbatos shakes his head. "I'm glad to know that my master is a capable person but words like these trouble me greatly. Please promise me that you won't get into trouble." 

"I don't think you need to worry about that at all. I mean what kind of trouble could I even get into on the way to breakfast?" I shake my head and shrug. 

"You would be surprised." Barbatos knits his eyebrows. "Well, regardless I trust you, master."

I can tell that he means 'you better not throw my trust away', it's hard to argue against him. 

"I promise that I will be good." I bow deeply to emphasize my point. 

Barbatos smiles, I'm not sure if he is relieved or just finds it funny. 

"Very well then. I will await your arrival with utmost patience." Barbatos decides to accept my words. 

"I will come soon." I nod and feel very motivated to not get into trouble.

With that Barbatos leaves me to my own devices. 

The bathroom is once again fully prepared. I wonder if they might have some magical gremlins or something that does the work here. 

It's quite the mystery for sure. 

I take my shower and choose today's outfit. Since I don't know what will be thrown at me today. 

I have a much easier time today finding my way. It makes me feel pretty good. 

"Good morning Diavolo." I greet him with a proud smile. 

"I knew you could do it!" Diavolo is very pleased and Barbatos smiles as well. 

"You are faster here than I expected. I will give you an extra waffle for this." Barbatos starts to stack up waffles on my plate. 

My eyes turn into stars. 

"It was a great decision to have waffles today." Diavolo looks very happy by my reaction. 

Barbatos nods. 

"Actually I have been wondering why you don't eat with us?" I wonder if Barbatos even eats at all. 

"That would be inappropriate. I'm nothing but a simple servant." He is taken aback by my question. 

"You might be right but do you even eat? You've been with me for most of the day without a single break." I genuinely wonder when Barbatos does anything, since every time everything is already prepared. 

"That is a very valid question." Diavolo sounds like he has never thought about it. 

"Don't concern yourself with me. I assure you that I do in fact eat and even take a break once a while." Barbatos doesn't seem to get the point of my question. 

"When was the last time you had a day off?" Now I'm even more curious. 

"Hmm about 40 years ago..." Barbatos takes a moment to remember it. 

I can't believe this. "What? 40 years? That's way too long. You really need a vacation." 

"I keep telling him to take a day off but he always refuses." Diavolo sighs. 

"I'm in no need of a vacation. I take great pleasure in my work and I'm sure the castle will be in ashes once I return." Barbatos is serious. 

"You are the kind of person who needs to be ordered to relax aren't you?" I sigh, it's impossible to imagine him casually. 

"I think you have the wrong picture of me. I can relax all on my own." Barbatos doesn't get it. 

"Maybe you need to show a more casual side of yourself." Diavolo chimes in from the side. 

"I will consider it." Barbatos doesn't sound serious. 

"Maybe we should order him to eat with us at least?" I look towards Diavolo. 

"Oh, what a splendid idea. I have not considered that." Diavolo is fully onboard. 

"Who will serve you while you eat then?" Barbatos frowns. 

"I think we can manage to stand up and get our food ourselves." It's a very easy task. 

"I don't doubt that but it would be inappropriate for me to let you get your own dishes." Barbatos’ frown grows only deeper.

"How about joining us for tea at least? We have done that before." Diavolo brings up a great compromise. 

"That would be acceptable." Much to my surprise, Barbatos agrees. 

"I wish I had time to bake something." I have not seen today's schedule yet but I fear it will be very loaded. 

"I'd love to try your baking one day." Diavolo smiles gently. 

"Once the party is over you will have more time and then you can bake as much as you want. We might have a lesson until the party. It might be a good learning experience." Barbatos ponders about this for a moment. 

"It would be a great experience. I mean surely my cute little sibling could teach you a human recipe?!" Diavolo looks at me. 

"Sure, I can teach you." I decide to play along. 

Barbatos’ eyes light up. "In that case, I will add a lesson to your training."

Who would have thought that this was so effective on Barbatos? Baffled, I look at Diavolo. He smirks at me. I give him a thankful smile. 

With that our breakfast ends. 

Somehow I look forward to whatever will be thrown at me. Even when I will probably regret thinking this. 

"Today's first lesson will be provided by me." Diavolo surprises me with this. 

"Really what will we do?" I'm pretty curious now. 

Diavolo seems to enjoy my excitement. "Haha, you will have to wait and see." He joyfully laughs. 

"Don't forget that you need to bring them to your office by 10 at the latest." Barbatos casually reminds Diavolo. 

This doesn't bother Diavolo a lot. "I know. After my lesson, we will have you learn about politics. Honestly, it's just about filling out papers." Diavolo sighs just a little bit. 

"It is very important work." Barbatos glares at Diavolo. 

"Anyway, let's not waste any time." Diavolo suddenly seems to be in a rush. I suspect it's to get away from Barbatos. 

"Okay, see you later Barbatos." I lightly bow to him. 

Diavolo waits for me at the entrance of the room. 

We walk for quite a while until Diavolo finally opens a big door.

The light blinds me for a moment. Much to my surprise, I see a vast garden. It's very well maintained. 

I'm very impressed. "This garden is very beautiful." I look at it in awe. 

"I'm glad you like it. I thought you would like to see something else after being stuck inside all day." Diavolo seems much more relaxed after hearing my excitement. 

"That is very thoughtful of you." It's very sweet of Diavolo. I spot many plants that I have never seen before. 

They all look very interesting. 

Diavolo watches over me with a big smile. "Watch out, some of these bites." 

"Really which of them?" I can't help but be curious. 

Diavolo chuckles and points to some ominous-looking plants. "These devil traps for example." 

I look at them from a safe distance. "I should note to keep away from them."

"This is actually today's lesson. Studying the plants of the devildom. I told Barbatos that this would be more effective than looking at pictures and we also agreed that you could use some fresh air. Being cooped in the castle isn't good." Diavolo is always so considerate of me. 

It's very sweet."I will definitely remember this plant." I have to agree. 

"There are some other nice plants here. Oh, the blood roses are my biggest pride. They are in bloom too. Let's go there next." Diavolo is especially excited about this. 

"That sounds great." I honestly wonder how amazing they are. Diavolo certainly sold them to me. 

On the way, Diavolo points out other plants that I need to keep away from. He does a good job of making sure I remember their appearance. 

Soon I see the blood roses, they are similar to human roses but way bigger and with sharp thorns. They look beautiful and dangerous. 

Diavolo looks at them with such admiration that it makes me smile. 

I step a bit closer but somehow I stumble over something in the ground. I almost fall face-first into the flowers. That certainly would have ended very painfully for me. 

But miraculously I got caught by Diavolo.

Effortless he holds me up. He is so close right now that I feel his breath on my face. 

His eyes are very pretty from this close. He stares at me for a moment and then carefully places me on the ground. My heart is pounding, I wasn't ready for this at all. 

"Are you alright?" Diavolo is slightly flushed. 

"Y-yeah thank you for catching me." Slightly embarrassed I fix my outfit. 

"You need to be careful. I don't want you to get hurt." He sounds unusually soft.

Somehow it's very effective on me. "I will." 

"Maybe, I should carry you just to make sure…" Diavolo seriously ponders over this. 

"I don't think that is necessary. I will be careful." Somehow I imagine him throwing me over his shoulder to carry me. I can't risk it. 

Diavolo looks a bit sad. "Alright, maybe next time then." He had that sad puppy face again. 

"Maybe." It's so hard to be strict with him. I should take lessons for that from Barbatos. 

This thought causes me to smile.

"Hold my hand at least." Diavolo doesn't seem to be able to let this go. 

I guess I can do this much for him. "Alright." 

Diavolo is very happy about this. 

He holds his large hand out for me and I hold it with just enough strength to not let it go. He in turn holds mine firmly, but I assume that he holds his true strength back. 

Somehow it feels very nice.


	7. Chapter 7

I'm pretty sad once we reach Diavolos office. This only means that he will let go of my hand. 

It feels just a bit lonely, but I don't allow him to see that.

"Here we are and just in time too." Diavolo is pretty happy about this fact. 

"Very well done." Barbatos compliments Diavolo. Next, he looks at me and notices that Diavolo still holds my hand. He places a hand on his chin. It looks like he is thinking about remaking something. 

"Mind me asking what this is about?" Barbatos then just straight-up asks. 

"Hm? Oh, you mean holding hands? I wanted to prevent them from falling in the roses." Diavolo is confused for a moment but then quickly realizes it. 

"Are you alright?" Barbatos frowns and looks at me with worry. 

"It was a close call but Diavolo saved me." I shoot Diavolo a thankful glance. 

"This could have ended badly. I knew I should have been watching over you more carefully." Barbatos seems very bothered by the whole incident. 

"I'm fine though, so all is good." I don't quite see the issue. As long as I didn't get injured, it should be fine. 

Barbatos seems troubled by this.

"You should trust me to be able to protect my sibling." Diavolo frowns slightly. 

"It's not that I don't trust your abilities. I just can't handle the thought of the young master getting hurt." Barbatos looks at me with seemingly conflicting feelings. 

"I'm glad that you worry about me, but I'm safe with both of you watching out for me." There honestly doesn't seem to anything that could hurt me with them around. 

"That's right we will always be here to protect you." Diavolo heartily agrees to this. 

"That should be evident. Maybe I was overly harsh just now, but please make sure to be careful." Barbatos agrees and then gently smiles at me.

"I will, thank you for caring about me." I feel a bit embarrassed by his words. 

Diavolo gives me an extremely pleasant smile. Barbatos smiles as usual, but I think he appreciates my comment. 

"Shall we get to work then?" Barbatos then brings us back to the reason to be here. 

Diavolo looks a bit beaten for a moment and sighs. He must hate this part of his job. "I guess I have no choice."

I peek at the huge stack of papers and can only feel bad for Diavolo. 

"So you will sit over here and look through some papers and read some books I have prepared for you. I need to assist lord Diavolo for a while and will answer your questions later. There is some paper for you to take notes." Barbatos shows me to a small desk with a stack of books and papers. They rival Diavolos' stack. 

I internally sigh. This really doesn't look fun or interesting at all. At this moment I feel great sympathy for Diavolo. 

Barbatos must sense my disinterest. "If you are done with these, I will present you with a great treat." 

I perk up right away. "What kind of treat?" 

Barbatos is obviously pleased by my response. "Well, you will find out if you work hard." He looks like he grins, but I might imagine this. 

He got me yet again.

"Will I get a treat too, once I'm done?" Diavolo seems equally excited by the prospect of a treat. 

"I wouldn't think you require one, but we will see." Barbatos sounds colder to Diavolo than to me. 

He is stricter with him than with me that much is certain. 

"I need one," Diavolo mumbles just loud enough for me to hear. 

I feel bad for him. Diavolo saved me and is nothing but nice to me. So, I make a decision. "I will make you some treats when I have my baking lesson."

Diavolo looks at me, surprised for a moment, and then he smiles at me so brightly that I see stars for a moment. 

"I need to work extra hard in that case." Suddenly he seems to burst from motivation. 

"So that is what is needed for you to work hard." This time Barbatos smirks. 

It's a very surprising sight.

Then suddenly I feel like I'm excluding Barbatos. "I will make some for you too, Barbatos."

His eyes widen. Barbatos wasn't expecting this. "It is very kind of you to think of me."

"It's only natural. You do so much for me that I want to do something in return for you." It doesn't seem to be anything special to me, to be honest. 

Barbatos gives me the kindest smile.

It seems like he never expected anything in return for all his help. Maybe he even expects me to resent him for all these lessons. Even when he only wants to help me.

Soon after this, the boring part of the day starts. I have filled out human forms before and the demon ones aren't really all that different. I occasionally have to look up a word or some context, but it all somehow makes just as much sense as human documents to me. This is to say that I can fill them out as long as I don't ponder over them too much or lose myself in their deeper meaning. 

I make pretty good progress, even when I can't pretend that I understand what I'm doing. 

I mostly copy and paste information from the prefilled copies that Barbatos provided for me.

"I wish we had a computer, that would make this so much faster. Especially if we would have a form that we could fill out on the computer and then just print out." I sigh and just let my frustration out. 

Diavolo looks at me with surprise. "There is such a device in the human world?" 

"Yeah, of course, is this news to you?" I'm a bit baffled since they do have rather modern phones. 

"Well… I never thought of that." Barbatos sounds genuine. 

I'm speechless. "We honestly could save a lot of work with a computer."

"I have no idea how to use one, but it does sound convenient." Diavolo is interested. 

"I heard about their abilities, but I'm a bit worried that lord Diavolo would play and never work." Barbatos has some pretty valid concerns. I can see that happening pretty easily. 

"It still would save a lot of work though and as long as Diavolo is motivated he could get faster finished and then play as a treat." I feel like I'm talking about a child right now. 

"You do realize that I'm right here, right?" Diavolo seems a bit of hurt. Even when he doesn't deny our concerns. 

"At any rate, I will think about getting one for the young master." Barbatos seems to have much faith in me. What makes me feel pretty good, but I'm a bit worried about Diavolo. He does look a bit sad. 

"That would be great, and I can teach Diavolo too. We might get pleasantly surprised." I put a small amount of faith into Diavolo. 

This makes him perk up immediately. "That sounds like a wonderful idea." 

"I'm not completely opposed to this plan but first you both should continue to fill out the documents that you have.

Diavolo and I simultaneously sigh.


	8. Chapter 8

The rest of this lesson goes smoothly, but I'm glad it's over. 

I glance nervously at Barbatos, who is correcting my work. It looks like he makes countless corrections. 

I feel sweat building up along my spine. 

"You did very well for your first lesson. Just go over the corrections until lunch, and you will be fine." Barbatos hands me the stack of papers back. 

"I thought you would say some more since you corrected so much." I feel relieved but also a bit unsure of how to take this. 

"Most of my corrections were minor mistakes in the language, but I can not hold these against you since you have just arrived here. I was prepared for more grave mistakes, to be honest. You once again surpassed my expectations." Barbatos smiles at me, slightly proudly. 

I start to wonder if his expectations for me are just remarkably low but take the compliment regardless. 

I review the corrections, and then it's finally time to eat. 

Lunch is delicious as always. 

"I have some good news for you. I have talked with Lucifer, and he agreed to let you meet one of his brothers. I think it would be best for you to speak with one of them before the party. The brother you will meet is Mammon. He is the 2nd most powerful brother. Mammon is the Avatar of greed." Diavolo sounds excited about the news. 

"That sounds interesting. When will I meet him?" I generally wonder how other demons are. Maybe this will be helpful for me. 

"In the evening. I know it's short notice, but I hope you are okay with that." Diavolo looks a bit guilty. 

"That's fine for me. It's not like I had other plans." I simply shrug. 

"I'm glad to see that you are so lively." Barbatos smiles as always. 

"Will I need to dress something nice for him?" I don't want to make a bad expression. 

"You are perfect as you are." Diavolo smiles brightly. I slightly wonder what he will say when I'm dressed nicely. 

"I agree with that sentiment. Besides, Mammon is a rather casual demon himself." Barbatos nods and casually continues to clean the table. 

"Alright, I will just stay as I am then. What is my next lesson?" I just want to start it, so it can be over. 

"You are very motivated today. Lord Diavolo should take you as an example." Barbatos smiles and makes a snide comment. 

"I will return to my work." Diavolo looks a bit beaten.

Barbatos nods in agreement. 

"Now regarding your lesson. We will practice your table manners, and then I will squeeze a bit more politics in before you meet Mammon." Barbatos seems very used to juggle my schedule around. 

This doesn't sound too bad. "So are we going to stay here?" 

"Indeed. We will practice the proper tea ceremony and how to act at a party." Barbatos then proceeds to prepare the table once again. 

He is very effective that is certain. 

"Have fun with your lesson." Diavolo sounds a bit dejected. 

"I hope your work will be easy." I smile at Diavolo. After seeing his workload, I feel much compassion towards him. 

Diavolo lights up at my words. "With this wish, it can only be easy."

With that Diavolo leaves. 

"I will show you how to hold the cup." Barbatos lifts the tea with a few elegant movements and then proceeds to drink it. 

It's very impressive. I feel propelled to applaud him but stop myself. 

I try to emulate his movements, but it's way harder than it looks. 

Barbatos sees me struggling and then takes my hand, which still holds the cup. 

He then slightly corrects my fingers. "Like this master," Barbatos whispers into my ear, which sends shivers down my spine. 

My heart starts to hammer in my ears, he is way too close. 

Then Barbatos backs up. I let out a small breath. This was a close call. 

This repeats a few times during my practice. It's very bad for my heart. 

The lesson is technically easy, but I'm very glad when we are back to boring politics and history. 

After the end of the lesson, I feel slightly unsure. "What kind of person is Mammon?" 

"You should just meet him with an open mind and don't give him money." Barbatos doesn't seem to want to influence me. 

Even when the last part strikes me as odd. I just take it as solid advice and Diavolo said he is the avatar of greed. 

With mixed feelings, I go and meet Mammon. 

Barbatos leaves me alone with the guest. I assume he just wants to give me space. 

Mammon has already made himself comfortable. 

"Hello, I assume you have been told about me by your big brother?" I greet him slightly awkwardly. 

"Umm yeah. It honestly is a huge surprise to everyone. Like a human being adopted by the demon king? Talk about weird. We kinda assumed you were like a toddler or something. So I'm kinda relieved to see that's not the case." Mammon seems indeed very casual. 

This makes me feel great relief. "Yeah, it was a big surprise to me as well. I'm still getting used to everything but Diavolo and Barbatos doing their best to make me feel at home."

"How did that adoption even happen? It just came out of nowhere to everyone." Mammon is pretty blunt with his questions, but I prefer that to be sneaky. 

"I have no idea why the demon King chose me. He just kinda used his powers to summon me into his castle and told me that he is now my father." I'm unsure if it's smart to tell the story like this, but somehow I feel like I can tell Mammon. 

Mammon is seemingly surprised by this information. "Wait, he kidnapped you didn't he?" 

"I suppose you can say that. I can't really complain though since living here is pretty great. I mean the training is hard, but the food is great." I just shrug and take a sip of tea. 

"You are tougher than you look. I'd be going bonkers if it be me. I mean being trained to be the future demon ruler? Doesn't sound like it's fun." Mammon closes his eyes and nods. 

"Well, it's not all bad. I get treated to good food and Diavolo and Barbatos are both so nice. I kinda feel like at home already." I give him a small smile. 

"I got a hard time imagining Barbatos being all nice. He is pretty scary, to be honest." Mammon makes a strange face. It looks like he is remembering something unpleasant. 

"Hmm, I guess how he smiles all the time can be a bit unsettling." I somehow have a hard time picturing Barbatos being scary. Especially to another powerful demon. 

"Yeah, but I have seen him angry and that is very scary. Still, I wonder why they choose you. No offense but you look pretty normal to me. Are you some kind of magic prodigy?" Mammon shudders and changes the topic. 

"That is a good question. I have never felt magical if that makes any sense. The other day my magic was measured and the device broke but no idea what that might mean." I ponder over the question for a moment. 

Suddenly Mammon gets very pale. "Umm well, actually that might be my fault. You see that thing looked kinda valuable. I just kinda umm took a closer look at it and accidentally dropped it. It looked fine but well…" Mammon sighs deeply. Then he suddenly panics. "Oh, wait, please don't say this to anyone. They will kill me!" He looks at me with pleading puppy eyes. 

This is honestly of no big concern to me, but at least it explains the black smoke. Then I have an idea. "I won't tell anyone but in exchange, I want some information about your brothers."

This is the perfect opportunity for me to gain some valuable Intel. I have to increase my odds of survival.

Mammon seems to be very troubled. "Look I want to survive, but I can't sell my brothers out you know."

"That's not what I mean. You see the demon king wants me to show him that I am worthy of the throne. I have to make a good impression at the party or else he might kill me. I just need some info, so I can gain some points from your brothers." I give him my straight and honest reasons. 

"Ah, I see. So some basics about what they like will be enough, right?" Mammon gets my point right away. 

"Yes, that would be great Mammon." I smile at him. 

Mammon nods. "Okay. So Lucifer likes classical music and expensive stuff. He has the tastes of an old man to be honest. Don't tell him you got that from me, though." 

I nod and take mental notes. "That sounds easy enough. I'm sure Diavolo would know what Lucifer wants anyway. It kinda sounded like they are close."

"Close is an understatement. They are like a married couple or something." Mammon shrugs. 

Somehow these words sting. "Wait, don't tell me that they are a couple?" 

"Not as far as I know. They are just kinda all hush and act high and mighty." Mammon shakes his head. 

I need to ask Barbatos about this later. 

"Hmm, I see. So the next brother?" 

"That would be me. The great Mammon. I like cars and brand products. So don't try to cheap sell me!" Mammon boasts loudly. 

"You will be happy with whatever I get you." I quickly shoot him down. 

"Aww come on!" He pouts.

"Sorry, but I have a lot of people to consider and don't forget that you broke a very expensive magical device." I give him a slight smirk. 

"Pretty mean of you." Mammon huffs, he is like a small child. I somehow feel a bit bad. 

"I will find you something nice okay?" 

"You better…" This seems to satisfy him. "Well moving on. Next up we have Levi. He is the avatar of envy. He loves anime and games. Levi is an Otaku as you humans would say." 

This also seems very easy. "Alright, I probably have some games I could give him."

"After that comes Satan. He is the avatar of wrath. Satan likes books and cats. He also hates Lucifer. Then we have Asmo. He likes clothes and beauty products. He is the avatar of lust, but he might as well be the avatar of vain. Not only that, but he also likes to party with me. Next is Beel, he is the avatar of gluttony. As you can guess he loves food. He is also into sports. Last we got Belphie. He is Beel’s twin and all he does is sleep. I mean he is the avatar of sloth. Oh, yeah, I think he liked stars. That's pretty much it." Mammon lists everyone up. 

This is very helpful. "Wow, they all have very basic interests. Thank you very much for your help." I smile and have already some ideas ready. 

"Well, I suppose they do have basic interests, but what did you expect?" Mammon shrugs. 

"No clue, something eccentric? Don't get me wrong I'm happy with this. At least I will have something to talk to them about." I'm honestly just glad that I don't need to learn about some strange stuff. 

"I think they are pretty eccentric but whatever." Mammon shrugs without care.

"Thank you very much for the help Mammon. I'm sorry that I blackmailed you." I feel a bit guilty at least. 

"It's fine, I get it. I would do the same in your situation. I'm just glad that you won't tell anyone." Mammon doesn't seem to see any issues. 

"You are very nice for a demon. I mean I have no idea about demons, to be honest." I'm not sure if he gets what I mean. 

"Well, I'm the great Mammon so of course, I'm great." He laughs and blushes just a little. 

I shake my head. "I mean all of this is still pretty crazy to me, so it's nice to see that you are so relaxed."

"You have it pretty rough hm? Well, I will give you my number, so you can call me when ya need someone to talk to." Mammon wraps his concern into doing me a big favor. 

"That is very nice of you. I think you will be my first proper friend in the devildom." I give him an honest and grateful smile. 

Mammon looks away, obviously embarrassed. "Don't just say things like that." He mumbles and gives me his number. 

This meeting goes way better than I expected. I'm very pleased.


	9. Chapter 9

With a slight spring in my step, I head to dinner. 

"Good evening Diavolo and Barbatos." I happily greet them both. 

Barbatos gives me his signature smile. 

Diavolo lights up as soon as he sees me. "You look like you had a great time."

"Yeah, I was a bit nervous, but I think I made my first friend." I smile with some pride. 

"That's great to hear. To be honest I was a bit worried that you might feel lonely." Diavolo looks like a huge weight has been lifted from his shoulders. 

"I'm very happy for you. Even when I hope you choose your friends more carefully." Barbatos sighs just a bit. 

My guess is, that Mammon is a bit of a troublemaker. "There is no need to worry. I mean I have you and Barbatos. I only know you for a few days, but you are both very dear to me." It's a bit embarrassing to say out loud. 

Both seem equally surprised by my words. 

"It's the greatest honor to be regarded as your friend." Barbatos is the first to respond. It's a bit hard to tell his true thoughts, but he looks very happy to me. 

"I feel the same way. I hope we will become even closer. It's funny to think that it's not even been a week yet, but I can't even imagine the castle without your presence." Diavolo’s smile seems to glow even brighter than usual.

I might need sunglasses at this point. 

Despite this, his words feel warm inside my chest. "I feel the same way. I think I never even realized how lonely my life truly was." 

I smile a bit sad but also happy at the same time. 

Then I feel a hand on my shoulder. "Worry not, your days alone are over." Barbatos’ words are unusually tender. My smile brightens at his words. 

"I hug him. Who could say no to him? 

Barbatos chuckles behind me. This must be a very strange sight, to be honest. 

I don't mind since hugging Diavolo feels much better than I expected. He is very warm, much like his big hands. 

I bet I could use my whole human strength, and he wouldn't even wince. He might even enjoy a good bear hug, maybe next time. 

I let go of Diavolo, who kind of looks like he wants more hugs but doesn't say a word. Instead, he just smiles at me. 

"Well now, where we are even you should finish today's work." Barbatos is back to smile as usual. Diavolo sighs. 

"Fine, I will go back to work." His shoulders slump.

Barbatos shakes his head. 

"I know it's late, but I would recommend that you read a bit in the library. There is much to learn. Especially with our tight schedule." Barbatos talks gently to me. 

"You are probably right. I need some caffeine for that." I can only imagine the stack of books that Barbatos wants me to read. 

"I will make you some. Please go ahead." Barbatos still has some tasks to do, and I appreciate the offer. 

"Okay." So I head to the library and find a menacing stack of books. 

After some reading, I hear Barbatos arriving with my fuel. 

I give him a thankful look. "I have been waiting for this."

Barbatos chuckles. "If only everyone would be so excited about coffee."

I decide to take a small break and now that I'm alone with Barbatos it's the perfect opportunity to ask him about what Mammon told me earlier. 

"Do you want to join me for a cup?" I offer Barbatos the seat across from me. 

"I would be delighted." He sits down and pours himself a cup. 

I let him drink a sip and then get straight to the topic that's on my mind. "To be honest there is something that I want to ask you about." 

"Please go right ahead." He obviously doesn't mind. 

"The question I have is pretty personal, so you don't have to answer." I don't want him to be uncomfortable or reveal something that he shouldn't. 

Barbatos raises his eyebrows. "There is no need to worry about my comfort." 

I can only imagine what he thinks I'm about to ask. 

"I just heard something about Diavolo possibly dating Lucifer. I'm curious if that's true?" There is no talking around my question. 

Barbatos' eyes widen for a moment, and then he starts to smirk devilishly. "I can imagine who brought you to ask this, but I wonder why you would care about such a thing?"

For the first time since I know him, I believe that he is a demon. 

"I care for his well-being." I avoid his gaze. 

Barbatos seems to be very amused. "Is that so?" He gazes into my eyes, like doing so will reveal my true thoughts to him. "You don't need to worry about their relationship at all." He is very vague. 

"What do you mean by that?" I ask, feeling very frustrated. 

"Hmm, that is a good question." Barbatos is just teasing me now. I never thought he would do this to me. I puff my cheeks. 

This causes Barbatos to laugh. "I'm sorry master. They aren't dating at all. I'd say they are friends with much baggage." With the biggest grin, he flat out tells me the truth. 

"I see, so they have a long history. I guess it would be fair to ask them about that." I feel much better now knowing this. 

"Now I have to wonder if you might be interested in the young lord?" He looks at me with a pretty intense gaze. 

Now it's my turn to be surprised by a question. I almost spit my drink out. 

"Umm, well I mean… it's not like I don't like him, but I barely know him and want to make sure that I don't fall for someone that is already taken." I'd hate wasting my time and emotions on a pointless endeavor. 

A smile forms on Barbatos’ face. "That is very smart of you. I would support your future together." 

"As much as I appreciate your support, I haven't fallen for him yet and there might be other people that I'm possibly interested in." I feel the need to correct Barbatos on his assumptions. 

He looks once again surprised. "I hope you don't include Mammon on that list." He must disapprove of Mammon. 

"Of course not. I'm not known to fall easily for people." I shake my head. Not only that, but I have only seen Mammon once after all. 

Barbatos then thinks deeply. "But who else is there?" He doesn't realize the obvious answer. I have always seen him as a very smart, possibly cunning, man. Yet here he is completely oblivious. 

I narrow my eyes in frustration. "Look in a mirror."

"Hmm? You couldn't possibly mean…" Barbatos looks utterly and completely lost. I wonder if he looked like this when I hugged him earlier.

I sigh deeply. "Believe it or not, but you are on that list." I can't even really call it a list with two people on it. 

Barbatos almost seems to gasp for air. "As flattering as this is, please reconsider. I'm no worthy match for someone of your standing."

"Just because I got forcefully adopted doesn't make me royalty, but I apologize for making you uncomfortable." I assume that he simply wants to shoot me gently down. 

"You are royalty in my opinion, and I appreciate your consideration. I simply have to think about what is best for your future. I'm merely a humble servant and as such completely unfitting to be your partner." Barbatos sounds completely logical. I'm unsure how to feel about him seeing me as royalty.

"I don't care what other people might think about whom I love or not. To me, it's only important that we are a great match. Of course, I understand that you might not be interested in me." This would only make sense. He might not even be interested in dating at all.

“You are certainly interesting, and I can see you fighting whoever doesn’t accept your relationship. I might be worried about nothing.” He gives me a small smile.

“Of course, besides if, I’m the demon ruler there is no way I'd let anyone tell me who I'm allowed to marry or not. If there is a rule against it, I will simply change it.” I shrug with a small giggle.

Barbatos gives me a chuckle. “I fear for anyone that would dare to oppose you.” His eyes meet mine again. It feels somehow very tender. “Don't forget that I will always be at your side no matter what you wish to accomplish.”

I ponder the weight and meaning of these words. My heart beats faster for some reason.

Before I can give him a proper response the library door opens with great force. 

I back a bit off, seeing that I somehow became quite close with Barbatos during our conversation. I hadn't even noticed until this moment. 

I then look towards the door and see it's Diavolo. He has his trademark smile and looks very energetic. At least until he notices that I'm relaxing with Barbatos. 

"Ah, here you are." He looks at Barbatos, who turned towards him. 

"Have you been looking for me?" Barbatos seems slightly surprised. 

"No, I was looking for my sibling. Since I finally managed to get everything done." Diavolo boasts without a hint of shame. 

"This is certainly an evening to rejoice." Barbatos seems genuinely pleased, but it's a pretty obvious snide remark. 

"Yes, it is! I hope I didn't interrupt anything." Diavolo doesn't seem to notice the snaky undertone and just casually sits down next to me. 

"No need to worry. We just were talking about their goals after becoming the demon ruler." Barbatos grins slightly. 

While not a lie it's not the truth either.

"Really? Now that is something I'm very interested in." Diavolo is seriously interested. 

It makes me feel quite guilty. "I was only saying that I'd change rules if they would forbid me from loving whom I wish to love." 

Diavolo looks at me in awe. "So you have a potential prospect to marry? You certainly move quickly. Or is it a fellow human?" 

"No, there is no such person right now. I had nobody when I lived in the human realm. I was only talking hypothetically." I sigh, I can only wonder how Diavolo thinks of me. 

"Ahh, well, I'd abolish any rule that would inconvenience you anyway. So no need to worry about that." Somehow Diavolo looks relieved. 

"That is very kind of you. Even when it might be a bit reckless to say." I can picture him just changing rules on a whim without thinking about the consequences. 

"I have to agree on that." Barbatos calmly keeps drinking his tea. Without a worry about anything. I have no idea how he can do this. 

"You might be right, but if it's for you, I don't care." Diavolo shrugs.

How can he just say things like this?

I look at him, feeling very baffled but also slightly amazed. 

I glance at Barbatos looking for some reaction. He just crooks his head and calmly smiles at me, as if to ask me what I want.

"I guess in that case I'll be careful what I ask of you." This seems to be the best solution. 

"That is wise of you. You should make sure to gain knowledge as well. So you can request everything you desire without causing havoc." Barbatos casually shoves the stack of books towards me. 

"I'd rather accomplish my goals by working hard, but you are right. I need more knowledge for that." I can't stand the idea of getting everything handed to me on a silver platter. 

"I'd love to hear more about these goals." Diavolo beams at me with great expecting eyes. 

Barbatos is also strangely focused on me. It's pretty embarrassing.

"Well, my first goal is to survive the party and then my education." It's not a grand plan, but it's important. 

"That is a very reasonable goal. I'm sure you will be able to manage that. Of course, you still have some learning to do." Barbatos' taps on the books. He couldn't be more blatant even if he tried. 

"Indeed I have full confidence in your abilities." Diavolo has zero doubts, which is encouraging, but I also feel the weight of his trust. 

I guess I have no choice. "In that case, I will work hard." I look with dread at the books and then take one. 

Barbatos smiles brightly, surely a sign of his victory. 

"Do your best! I should go and check on the party preparations." Diavolo seems suddenly very motivated.

"You have a great effect on the young lord. I shall support him. Make sure you get plenty of rest." Barbatos beams with pride. 

"I will, thank you both." I smile at them, but internally I'm crying.

So I study until my head is mush and then fall into a deep sleep.

I dream of letters chasing me.


End file.
